The Buffalo Bills made a priority this offseason to improve the defense as it was a weakness last year and the main reason why they didn’t make the playoffs in 2011 after a 5-2 start. With their first round draft pick, the Bills made their defense a whole lot better.
The Bills via free agency improved the pass defense as they added defensive end Mario Williams. Even with his addition, Bills general manager Buddy Nix knew they needed more help at cornerback since teams like their division rival New England Patriots like to spread the football. He did just that as the Bills selected South Carolina cornerback Stephon Gilmore.
“We talked about adding corners with size and adding speed and I think we did both with this guy,” Nix said. “He’s been a 40 game starter in a pretty good league. He was high on our draft board from the start. I really thought when corners starting going he might not be there, but we were fortunate to get him.”
With South Carolina being in the SEC, Gilmore faced some wide receivers that are currently doing well in the NFL.
“I faced A.J. Green my freshman year,” Gilmore said. “I went against Julio Jones. I went against Riley Cooper. I went against Denarius Moore from the Oakland Raiders. I went against a lot of players who are doing well in the NFL, and I did well against.”
What gives Gilmore confidence that he can excel in the NFL, besides who he faced, is exactly what he is good at.
I think I can play press man and off man pretty well. I can do whatever the coaches want me to do,” Gilmore said. “Whatever they want me to do I am going to go hard at it. I’ll make plays to help my team win and make my fans happy.”
With teams using spread formations to throw the football down the field a lot cornerbacks in the NFL must be able to play off the wide receiver at the line of scrimmage. Gilmore’s ability to do just that is exactly why the Bills feel fortunate to get him.
“It’s the hardest thing to play in the secondary, is off man and he’s probably the best at that,” Nix said. “He’s very confident, he’ll walk up close if he needs to.”
In the end, with last year’s second round pick in cornerback Aaron Williams, the Bills now have two big physical cornerbacks. That means if a team is going to beat the Bills it is going to have to be running the football.
